Music

Hazel and Vine Go It Alone El Dorado Hills’ indie pop sensation Hazel and Vine are making its way home. Currently out on a CD release tour, the group has spent the last seven months recording and re-evaluating its career with changes that include going DIY and becoming the procurer…

Friendly Fires start a burning groove with Samba and”¦R&B? Friendly Fires are tapping into an energy that has turned entire cities into dance floors. The samba rhythms of Brazil have long been important to music culture, most notably having a monumental influence on jazz. But the boys from St. Albans,…

Jonny Craig is front and center on his solo debut Jonny Craig is a name many of you might be familiar with. The now Lexington, Ky.-based singer is currently frontman for Rise Records’ indie core sextet Emarosa. However, now that he has a bit of down time from his regular…

The Bread Store 1716 J Street, Sacramento Words & Photo by Josselin Bassaldu Driving east through Midtown, I was on my way. With my hair pulled up in a ponytail, a college sweatshirt on my back and a water bottle in my bag, I was determined to be prompt to…

Best Fwends, WHATEVAWHATEVAWHATEVA, Loch Lomand Luigi’s Fungarden “¢ Nov. 11-13, 2009 Words by Vincent Girimonte Last week, I ended up at Luigi’s Slice three consecutive nights, and it has culminated into the following article which will hopefully explain why a grown man is still frequenting pizza parlors by himself. Wednesday…

Aptly rhyming with the word remember, November is the time to recall memories of festivities, edifying food and the kindred spirits and gifts in life that conjure up feelings of gratefulness and the inclination to share good fortune with others. While eating at an “Italian” restaurant in a strip mall…

The Golden Cadillacs Evoke Classic California Country Sounds on Their Debut Album Friends who drink together stay together. That’s a saying, right? Regardless, it’s worked in the case of Nick Swimley and Adam Wade, who have been friends since high school. Two and a half years ago, they combined their…

Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band has the heart of a teen, literally. “We didn’t necessarily know what we were getting ourselves into,” explained Benjamin Verdoes, co-founder and lead singer of Seattle, Wash.-based Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band. He talked over the group’s timeline as he waited patiently for wife and…

STILL BARELY SCRAPING BY IN TOUGH TIMES Words by Mickie Rat I first heard of Swingin’ Utters in 1992 during my time as a DJ for KSSU, a fledgling college radio station at Sacramento State. They sent us a 10-inch record entitled Scared, which listed the name of the band…

Dan Deacon Luigi’s Fungarden, Sacramento, California Monday, Oct. 19, 2009 Words by Vincent Girimonte Photos by Samantha Saturday Dan Deacon’s set at Luigi’s Fungarden on Oct. 19 reminded me of that saying, “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly.” Manifesting this was a state worker boogying next to some…